Review - Ray Davies, October 30, 2001, State Theatre, Portland, ME

Date: October 30, 2001 1:39 PMFrom: Pete T.

Well we finally got our rescheduled Ray show in Portland ME last night,
and the wait was well worth it...incredible!! I didn't know much about his
storyteller show, so getting the readings, songs and stories was a
hilarious triple treat. Ray's the ultimate ham, in a good way. Vocals were in fine
form, Pete M's accompaniment was totally pro, and Ray's rhythm guitar so solid!
on the three or so Ovations that encircled him along with the amps and
monitors.

Ray's uninhibited, yuck-it-up delivery kept making me picture the boys in
that front room, learning to play and perform and just having a ball for
their own goofy amusement. I was at first surprised with the incomplete
renditions of songs, but soon realized how that fit in with the flow of the narrative
of the story. Great impressions of his dad, agents and managers, and the
infamous "Green Amp" with Dave's pencil holes in the speaker, too funny!
He could have just as easily been a successful comic I suspect, after that
promising soccer career bombed out.

I didn't know all the songs/titles, but here's what I remember (not
necessarily in order): Come Dancing, Where Have All the Good Times Gone, Victoria, Low
Budget, Julie Finkle, one intense one about being an individual/unique - I'm Not
Like Everybody Else ?, Dedicated Follower - yessss!, Set Me Free, Tired of
Waiting For You, several I have no idea, You Really Got Me; and two encores, first
a gorgeous Waterloo Sunset, then a closing, rousing Lola.

This was not a full house at the State Theater by any means, but those that
were there were way into it, singing along with great gusto with every word.
Always good to see a wide age range too, from a few kids to quite a few teens to
us old gray-hairs. Long live Ray and Dave and the Kinks!!!